COMO Connect Adds Three All-Electric Buses to City Fleet

COMO Connect, the public bus system owned by the City of Columbia, Mo., formerly Columbia Transit, says it is expanding its fleet by adding three zero-emission, all-electric buses to its fleet starting in June to better serve customers and reduce operational costs.

BYD will supply the 30-foot, low-floor, all-electric transit buses, with each featuring a battery that provides 144 miles per charge and can be recharged in only two to three hours.

According to the company, the all-electric buses will provide significant cost savings and dramatically improve local air quality by eliminating tailpipe emissions. COMO estimates that operating one all-electric bus is roughly equivalent to removing at least 70 passenger vehicles from the road daily.

“We leased an all-electric bus from BYD earlier as a demonstration and were very pleased with the results,” says Drew Brooks, multi-modal manager for COMO Connect. “The electric buses provided operational and fuel cost savings, were reliable on our service routes, and eliminated emissions, thereby helping to improve our local air quality.”

“BYD’s all-electric buses provide a multitude of benefits to operator and passenger,” says Macy Neshati, vice president of coach and bus for BYD. “The operator enjoys having a reliable bus that saves money, and the passenger enjoys having a quieter, comfortable bus that is helping the environment by eliminating harmful emissions that cause air pollution.”

COMO Connect says the buses are equipped with BYD-designed iron-phosphate batteries, which deliver 197 kWh of power and come with a 12-year warranty.